St. Thomas girls win tennis state title

CONCORD — Members of the St. Thomas Aquinas High School girls tennis team stood on the Memorial Field courts a year ago with the disappointing feeling of having lost the Class I title match.

Dan Doyon

CONCORD — Members of the St. Thomas Aquinas High School girls tennis team stood on the Memorial Field courts a year ago with the disappointing feeling of having lost the Class I title match.

The Saints returned to those courts for Tuesday's Class I championship match against Bishop Brady, and this time the Saints could celebrate.

The No. 1 doubles tandem of Bacall Brooks and Kim Greenwood wrapped up the Saints' 5-4 victory over Bishop Brady with a convincing 8-1 win over Rosemary Moran and Kelly O'Keefe. Third-seeded St. Thomas (15-2) finished the season with seven straight victories, including a 5-4 win over No. 2 Portsmouth in the semifinals.

No. 4 Bishop Brady ended its season at 14-3.

St. Thomas coach Heather Greenwood said her team's experience in last year's title match helped this time around. There were no surprises and fewer nerves, which allowed the Saints to focus on their matches.

"I said to the girls after warm-ups, 'You know what? I don't have one butterfly,'" Greenwood said. "Last year I was full of butterflies and anxiety. This year we had already gone through that, so it was just time to play tennis."

St. Thomas took a 2-0 lead when Karina Menard and Emily Annis picked up quick wins in their matches. Menard upended Meg Bryke at No. 2 singles, 8-0, while Annis beat Lindsay Aichinger, 8-1, at No. 5. Joan Carroll returned to the Saints at No. 3 after missing time with a hand injury but lost to Carly David, 8-0.

Brooks, a Kittery Point, Maine, resident, picked things up for the Saints with 8-3 win over Moran at No. 1 singles. The senior won five of the final six games to earn the victory.

"First and second singles were really important matches, and they finished pretty quickly," Greenwood said. "Emily Annis also had a good singles match. She played great in singles all year."

The coach's daughter, Kim, almost clinched the match before doubles play began. Kim Greenwood fell behind 5-1 against O'Keefe at No. 4 singles before battling back to tie the match at 7-7. O'Keefe outlasted Greenwood, 9-7, but Kara Richard's 8-3 win over Kate Foley at No. 6 put the Saints up 4-2 after singles play.

The win by Brooks and Greenwood at No. 1 doubles proved to be big. After the clincher was over, the No. 2 and No. 3 doubles teams for St. Thomas lost. Bryke and David beat Menard and Annis at No. 2, 8-6. Aichinger and Erin Spaulding won at No. 3 over Richard and Jessica Cummings.

"Traditionally we're strong at doubles, but to win three out of three is a battle," Bishop Brady coach Marcia Moran said. "St. Thomas is an incredible team, there is no doubt about it. They really played well today."

After it was over, Brooks couldn't help but compare the endings of the last two seasons.

"It feels better when you win," Brooks said with a smile. "And it was against a good team, too. It was a good match and I felt like we earned it."

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